Because fast food can be good food too.
Michael Riley, part of the family down at Tropical Smoothie Cafe in Downtown Orlando, invited me down to review this establishment. It is a family run franchise, opened a little over a year ago. There are currently 3 generations of this family working various positions at this eatery.
They are located a little of the beaten path of downtown Orlando, just west of Orange Ave. on Washington St., so you might not have visited them yet, but it is worth the extra few minutes of walking. They have a wide selection of smoothies, wraps, sandwiches, salads, and flat breads. The food keeps with the tropical motif, and is very refreshing and perfect for the Florida heat. The smoothies are made with mostly fresh fruit, while some of the more exotic fruits are frozen or from concentrate. They also have excellent breakfast options that taste much better than fast food alternatives, and are competitively priced.
One of the things that Michael and his family do to differentiate from other Tropical Smoothie Cafe, is customer appreciation day. Generally, about once a month, they have a day for a particular business downtown (Regions Bank, Channel 13 News, etc.) where employees can get $1 low fat smoothies. You may say, “eww low fat”, but they are naturally low fat because of their fruit base, not because they are modified versions of regular smoothies. They also offer 50% off their low fat smoothies on Monday through Thursday from 4pm to 6pm. Lastly, they have a breakfast club, which entitles the bearer of one of those key chain tags to 20% off their breakfast order before 10am, Monday through Friday.
One of the great things served to me during my visit was the Royale cookie, colloquially known as “Fat Kid’s Heaven”. It is an amazing mix of oatmeal, chocolate chips, macadamia nuts, and cocoa nut. This definitely isn’t the healthiest item on the menu, but it is one of the most delicious.
Connect with Tropical Smoothie Cafe Downtown Orlando on Facebook.
Smokey Bones is giving mom a free meal on Mother’s Day with this coupon. Mom only eats free with the purchase of another meal, so no dropping her off for a free meal while you eat somewhere else.
A Slice of NY Pizza has great pizza, and great customer service. They have a lunch special, 2 slices of cheese pizza and a can of soda for $5. I asked for a bottle of soda, and I would pay the difference, but they still only charged me $5. Rather than get a little more money out of me that day, they opted for great customer service. The only gripe I have with A Slice of NY is their crust. The crust is nice and thick, and fluffy, but doesn’t have any flavor. Some type of sauce for dipping would really complement the great pizza. Regardless of the crust, I would recommend this place.
Here’s a nifty page updated regularly with KFC coupons, so bookmark it and check it regularly for deals.
Joe’s Pizzeria will do in a pinch if you really have a craving, but don’t expect anything above mediocre.
You could tell the pizza by the slice had been sitting out for a while. It was dry from sitting out and having to be reheated. They weren’t busy, but the tables hadn’t been wiped clean. The cabinet for the soda machine didn’t have doors so you could see all the syrup pouches and CO2 canisters. The cashier/server wasn’t too thrilled to be working there. The pizza isn’t godawful, but it would be hard even say it was good. There are plenty of pizza places in Orlando, avoid this one.
Here’s another short form review.
I definitely recommend Amazonas Latin Grill. Everything is delicious, even their black beans and rice which is often an ignored and bland side item. Their portions fit perfectly with their prices. I wouldn’t expect to pay any less for the amount of food you get, especially considering how good it is.
Arby’s has a coupon for a free regular roast beef sandwich with the purchase of a medium drink. This coupon expires April 13, so hurry up and use it.
This review will be the first of a new format. I’d like to get to the point of the post, and rate the establishment, rather than fluff up the post with meaningless talk.
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